Mikk Plakk is the CEO and third-generation visionary behind Paul-Tech, a pioneering agri-tech company dedicated to transforming soil science into actionable insights for farmers worldwide. Building on nearly 40 years of research initiated by his grandfather, Paul Plakk, and advanced by his father, Tiit Plakk, Mikk has carried forward the family legacy to develop Paul-Tech’s innovative in-field soil sensor technology. Under his leadership, the company, co-founded with his wife Eve and father Tiit, is redefining smart farming by empowering growers with real-time data to optimize soil health, resource use, and crop yields—giving the soil a voice like never before. DeliveryRank offers an exclusive interview.
Your soil stations provide real-time data on nutrients, moisture, and temperature. How does this continuous monitoring help farmers make more informed decisions about fertilization and irrigation?
One of the key advantages of our technology lies in nutrient monitoring—something that has been largely missing until now. Traditionally, devices have been able to continuously measure factors like soil moisture and temperature, and while some have claimed you can adjust fertiliser use based on these parameters, the most critical data—nutrient availability and plant uptake—hasn’t been accessible in real-time. Our focus is currently on nitrogen, the most widely used fertiliser globally. With our technology, we can now monitor not only when nitrogen becomes available in the soil, but also when and how it is actually absorbed by the plants.
This continuous monitoring is a major leap forward compared to the standard soil testing practices still used today. Progressive farmers might test once a year, though the minimum legal requirement is just once every five years. A sample is taken at a single point in time, by someone at a specific location, and then sent to a lab for analysis. The results only reflect that moment, under those exact conditions, and yet fertilisation decisions for an entire season are based on that snapshot. What we offer is a dynamic, real-time view of what’s happening below ground—allowing farmers to make better-informed, timely decisions about fertilisation and soil health.
You combine soil sensor data with satellite and weather information to give a full picture of field conditions. How does integrating these different data sources improve the accuracy of your recommendations to farmers?
The key isn’t just about giving farmers data—it’s about providing the full picture. While there are solutions on the market that focus solely on weather patterns or rely exclusively on satellite imagery, we go further by integrating real-time, in-field soil data to dramatically improve accuracy and relevance. What sets us apart is that we don’t just deliver raw data—we translate it into meaningful insights.
Using machine learning models and AI-based forecasting, we analyse all available inputs to generate actionable, crop-specific recommendations. These insights take into account regional conditions, growth stages throughout the year, and countless other variables. It’s never just a basic yes-or-no recommendation; it’s about tailoring guidance to your exact needs—whether you’re an arable farmer growing winter wheat, or cultivating onions or salad greens. Every crop, every soil type, every environment requires a nuanced approach.
To do this, we merge our soil sensor data with external inputs like weather forecasts and satellite-derived vegetation indices (like NDVI), which provide insight into plant health. In short, we deliver a holistic, intelligent decision-support system—not just soil data.
Farms using your technology have reported significant reductions in fertilizer use and increases in crop yields. What features of your system contribute most to these gains in efficiency and productivity?
Our key unique selling point is real-time nutrient monitoring—particularly focused on nitrates. This is where the true value of our product shines. Unlike traditional methods, we provide a baseline measurement during the winter months, establishing the starting point of nutrient content in the soil. Then, when you begin fertilising—whether mechanically or organically, with slurry, manure, or any other nitrate-releasing fertiliser—we can track those changes in real time.
The critical insight comes from seeing exactly when those nitrates become available in the soil and when the plants begin absorbing them. This allows us to identify the delay between application and uptake—often two to four weeks—depending on weather and soil conditions. For example, if there’s no irrigation or rainfall during that period, the nutrients may never even reach the root zone, meaning the plants can’t benefit from them.
By visualising this process, farmers are empowered to make more informed decisions. After an initial fertilisation round, they can delay or reduce subsequent applications based on actual nutrient availability rather than assumptions. This often results in fewer rounds of fertilisation and lower input costs, without sacrificing yield—because no matter how much fertiliser you apply, crops can’t absorb more than what the growing conditions allow. This is the value of continuous monitoring: adjusting your fertilisation plan to the real-time conditions nature gives you.
Your work aligns closely with regenerative agriculture, which aims to restore and maintain healthy soil. How does your technology support these practices, and what has the response been from farmers using them?
What we offer also plays a vital role in supporting farmers on a regenerative journey. One of the main challenges in regenerative agriculture is that while it can be incredibly effective for certain soil types, it may not suit others as well. Additionally, many of the advocates of regenerative practices have been implementing them for a decade or more—meaning their soils are already in a healthy, self-restorative state. When a new farmer tries to adopt the same methods, the reality is that results aren’t immediate. It can take a lot of time (or similar) for those regenerative practices to start showing tangible benefits.
That’s where we come in. Our technology helps farmers validate whether their regenerative actions are actually working. By monitoring changes in soil nutrient dynamics—especially nitrates—we provide evidence-based insights into whether the soil is improving. While we don’t directly measure biological activity, we can show whether practices are enhancing nutrient availability and retention, which is a key indicator of soil health.
In short, we help farmers stay on track with their regenerative plans by showing progress and outcomes over time, even in the early stages when visual signs may not yet be obvious. This kind of validation is critical for building confidence and making data-informed decisions throughout the transition.
Your installation process includes taking detailed measurements to determine the best sensor placement. How does this precision affect the quality and reliability of the data you collect?
Of course, our process also validates the quality of the installation itself. When we install a device, we don’t place one every metre or two—that would be unrealistic and unnecessary. Instead, we work with the farmer, trusting their deep knowledge of their fields. If the field is highly variable, it may not be ideal for a single sensor, but for more uniform fields—where historical yield maps show consistent patterns year after year—a single device can provide highly representative data.
During installation, we use a handheld sensor to take 20 to 30 spot measurements, depending on the soil type and field conditions. The purpose of this is to establish an average baseline for that area. If those spot checks align with the sensor readings, we know we’ve placed the device in a reliable location. This validation step is critical—it gives us the confidence to trust the data coming from that field and ensures the recommendations we provide are grounded in accurate, representative insights.
How do you see the role of precision agriculture evolving over the next five to ten years, and where do you see your company positioned within that shift in the industry?
From my personal point of view, what we’ve observed over the past five years is a significant shift in focus within agri-tech. Initially, there was a strong push toward carbon tracking and ultra-precise remote sensing—down to one-by-one metre resolution across entire fields. But recently, especially from what I’ve seen and heard at leading agri-tech innovation conferences around the world, there’s been a clear movement toward the necessity of real-time soil measurement.
This trend is validating what we’ve been advocating for years. Finally, we’re hearing C-level leaders from major corporations acknowledging the same truth: soil sampling every five years simply isn’t enough. The reality is that soil conditions—and therefore plant growth conditions—can change daily, even hourly, depending on factors like rainfall or temperature. Static snapshots no longer cut it.
I also think there’s a shift happening in how we define precision. It’s no longer just about hyper-localised measurements. There’s a growing understanding that we don’t always need to manage fields on a metre-by-metre basis. Instead, we can take informed, generalised actions when we have real-time data that reflects the actual dynamics of the soil.
Ultimately, soil is the foundation of everything we do in agriculture. If we’re not measuring and understanding it continuously, we’re missing a major part of the picture. And I’m encouraged to see that this perspective is finally taking root more broadly in the industry.